Jaguar XK 120: The remarkable story of JWK 651 £30

It all looked to be going so well for JWK 651 at the 1950 Le Mans 24 Hours, when a broken clutch forced its retirement with less than three hours left in the race. It was more successful at the Autodrome de Linas-Montlhéry that year where, driven by Leslie Johnson and Stirling Moss, the car averaged a speed of 107.46mph, covering a distance of just over 2570 miles in a 24-hour period. In 1951, Johnson was back for a second attempt, driving solo, and this time set a record speed of 131.83mph for one hour, including a fastest lap of 134.43mph. The XK 120 was one of six competition cars prepared by Jaguar and its motorsport history makes for great reading in this second volume in the Exceptional Car series. Both text and illustrations are first class, building a real feel for this magnificent machine. There’s a look at how its five brothers fared too, plus chapters dealing with its road years and subsequent return to racing. JWK 651 is back to 1950 Le Mans spec now and still looks as impressive as ever. David Brown

Author: Chas Parker & Philip Porter

Publisher: Porter Press (www.porterpress.co.uk)

ISBN 978-1-907085-56-7